INEC Chair Warns RECs, Reviews Elections Ahead of 2027
Last update: February 25, 2026
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INEC Chairman tells RECs that “Excellence is not optional” while reviewing recent polls...
The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, on Wednesday presided over a high-level meeting with Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), declaring that
According to an official statement, the meeting held at INEC headquarters in Abuja reviewed the just-concluded FCT Area Council and state constituency elections, while setting the agenda for the Ekiti and Osun governorship polls and the 2027 General Election.
While acknowledging successes, Amupitan issued strong directives over lapses recorded in parts of the FCT, Kano and Rivers States.
He described voter apathy as a persistent challenge but noted that over 93 per cent of polling unit results were uploaded to the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) Portal by 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, with the figure later rising to an average of 97 per cent.
Prof. Amupitan also dismissed rumours of “voter migration” in 2026, explaining that the exercise was part of the 2022 polling unit expansion.
“As part of that initiative, 6.7 million voters were redistributed nationwide from 12,000 congested units to 17,000 new ones. In the FCT alone, 580,000 voters were moved to 1,156 new polling units to ease congestion,” he said.
CBI News reports that the INEC chairman directed RECs to intensify continuous voter education and urged citizens to verify their polling units via the online portal.
He expressed displeasure over the late opening of polling units, revealing that only 45 per cent of FCT polling units opened by the mandated 8:30 a.m., though all were operational by 10:00 a.m.
He described the delay as “unacceptable.”
“There will be consequences for any act capable of sabotaging the process,” he warned, disclosing that staff responsible for delays in Kuje Area Council and Kabusa Ward had been queried, while a transporter linked to delays in Kwali Area Council would be blacklisted.
Amupitan highlighted new safeguards in the result management system, noting that Presiding Officers must manually enter scores into the BVAS, which now conducts automatic validation checks to prevent over-voting and mathematical errors.
Addressing a viral allegation of result padding at Kuroko Health Centre in Kwali Area Council where a party was falsely reported to have scored 1,219 votes against 345 registered voters, he explained that investigations showed the discrepancy stemmed from a transparency error.
The Presiding Officer reportedly miscounted, corrected the figure in the open from 122 to 121, and entered the accurate figure into the official collation system.
“You are the Commission in your states. The buck stops with you,” Amupitan told the RECs, warning of sanctions for absenteeism or dereliction of duty, especially at Local Government offices.
He also informed the commissioners that following the passage of the Electoral Act, 2026, a revised timetable for the 2027 General Election would soon be released.
On voter registration, the chairman said the second phase of the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise is ongoing and will run until April 17, 2026, with the overall exercise concluding on August 30, 2026.
During the meeting, Amupitan swore in Dr. Chukwu Chukwuemeka Joseph as the REC for Enugu State, representing Abia State, urging him to uphold high standards of integrity.
